Depression Diary

I read that keeping a journal of one's thoughts can help when suffering with depression. 

Does anyone here keep a log of their thoughts and feelings during a depressive episode? Does anyone here read back over their log and realise how messed they actually are?

Yes. I did, for years. It seemed to help a little bit back then....but there was no online internet back then either. I still read passages that I wrote.....and think about how messed up I was. And how I didn't have any idea how I could have helped myself.

jean-vic said:

I read that keeping a journal of one's thoughts can help when suffering with depression. 

Does anyone here keep a log of their thoughts and feelings during a depressive episode? Does anyone here read back over their log and realise how messed they actually are?

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By doing so, you are holding on to the past, don't live out of the past. Past is gone, forget it, it is no more, no matter how beautiful/ugly it was. Live here, now. In being busy writing about past, you are missing out the present moment. In being busy reading it, you are missing out another present moment. By reading it, you project it, a wish/hope of how your future should be. Again, you are missing out the present moment. Boom, its gone! If you keep doing this, when will you live?

"Those who fail to learn from the past are doomed to repeat it"
-- Some famous dude, no doubt.

I read or head it somewhere. I've actually applied it in my life and it works. I held a journal for years. It's not a bad idea. It allows you to learn from it.

"We learn a lot of history, and a lot from history, yet history repeats itself."
-Yin

M_also_lonely said:

jean-vic said:

I read that keeping a journal of one's thoughts can help when suffering with depression. 

Does anyone here keep a log of their thoughts and feelings during a depressive episode? Does anyone here read back over their log and realise how messed they actually are?

Click to expand...

By doing so, you are holding on to the past, don't live out of the past. Past is gone, forget it, it is no more, no matter how beautiful/ugly it was. Live here, now. In being busy writing about past, you are missing out the present moment. In being busy reading it, you are missing out another present moment. By reading it, you project it, a wish/hope of how your future should be. Again, you are missing out the present moment. Boom, its gone! If you keep doing this, when will you live?

Click to expand...

Not necessarily.  By writing down your thoughts, you can look back at them when you are in a better frame of mind and try to figure out is causing the problems and possibly fix them. 
So really, it could go either way, depending on what your intentions are of keeping the journal.  If you are only going to focus on "how messed you actually are," it's probably not a good idea.  If you are going to use what you write to fix your issues, then it could be a good thing.

Waste of time. 
The solution of being bothered about past issues is to drop the past issues. 

Past is gone, nothing can be done about it.  The realization and acceptance of this fact is very necessary.

Live life spontaneously, moment to moment. That's true living. Then we are less mechanical, and more humane. 


Die to the past. Don't allow it to interfere with your present. The moment you have passed it, let it be no longer there. It is no longer there; it only goes on in your memory, it is just a remembrance. Let this remembrance also be released. This psychological hang-up should not be allowed.

I am not saying that you should forget everything that you know. I am not saying that all memory is bad. It has technical uses. You have to know how to drive, you have to know where your home is, you have to recognize your wife and your children. But those are not psychological hang-ups. When you come home of course you recognize that this is your wife. This is factual memory-useful, enhances life, facilitates it.

M_also_lonely said:

"We learn a lot of history, and a lot from history, yet history repeats itself."
-Yin

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I can get behind that as well, it's not without value.
I'm just not sure it applies to keeping a personal diary. I guess it's a matter of preference.

I know reading mine back are hilarious. I was a real stupid guy.
"was" as in might still be,too ;-)

I personally find that writing can make things clearer in my head. What is basicly happening is thinking, but on paper. It has the same effect as talking with someone, it's the same thing essentially. Writing is useful in that it's private, in that you can read back what you said, and then work with that further. It can be tough to develop or move on from an idea, if it's solely stuck in your mind.


I just reread your question and realize that this answer is probably not what you're looking for. Yes, i sometimes write things down, though it's rare. I do read back stuff sometimes, but i tend to be either intrigued or facepalming, and keep it at that.

I have kept a daily diary on a private blog for a few years. Not only when I'm depressed but several entries per day.

I have been able to recognise patterns and triggers for depression and anxiety by doing this.

I believe there are apps that do that nowadays (chart your emotions and hormones?) but I don't have a smart phone or whatever. Writing is therapeutic anyway and I enjoy reading posts from a year, month and week ago. It helps so much seeing these patterns because when I am in a hopeless, suicidal state it feels like it'll never end but I can see from my journal that it usually passes within a week.

It also really helps me have self-compassion (which is very important!) because I can see retrospectively how hard I am on myself and how seriously I take things. Also all the things I worry about that never come true...I am beginning to realise how futile that is.

Appreciate all the answers. Definitely agree that writing it down helps clear my mind in the moment which then allows me to process what I'm thinking. I find it hard to think things through clearly when I'm jumping from one irrational thought to the other. When it is there in front of me, I can focus on what I'm reading and work from there.